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How to Change the Name of Your Swiss Company
Updated on Monday 15th July 2019 Rate this article
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Companies established in Switzerland are legally entitled to make various changes to their initial data registered with the local authorities. For instance, businessmen are entitled to modify various aspects prescribed in the company’s articles of association, and one of these matters refers to the company’s name. The name of the company can be changed due to a set of reasons, and our team of consultants in company registration in Switzerland can provide an extensive presentation on the procedure available in this case. Why change the company’s name in Switzerland?
Investors may find themselves in the situation of changing the company’s registered name due to a set of reasons. For example, the modification of the company’s name can be necessary when changing the legal structure of the company. In this sense, we mention the sole trader, which must have a specific company name structure and which must also include the name of the founder.
In the case in which the owner of the sole trader will modify the legal structure (by transforming it into a limited liability company), the company’s name structure will no longer have to include the person’s name; instead, it will be necessary to include the abbreviation for the new selected legal entity. Besides this reason, others can apply and our team of specialists in Swiss company formation can provide legal advice on the following:
- • the company’s name no longer represents the business activity the company operates in;
- • the company’s name has a complex structure that often leads to confusion or it is constantly misspelled by various parties;
- • the modification of the company’s name can also be necessary in situations regarding intellectual property rules;
- • this becomes applicable if another company registered a trademark that resembles with the one of the company that must modify its name;
- • the modification of the company’s name is also customarily changed during merger and acquisition procedures;
- • the company’s name can also be modified when the business is reoriented to other economic activities.
How can a businessman change the company’s name in Switzerland?
The procedure for changing the company’s name starts by making amendments to the company’s statutory documents; the decision is based on the consent of the company’s shareholders. In order to change the company’s name, the Companies Register in Switzerland has to be notified by the intention of modifying one of the information registered with the institution.
It is necessary to know that all businesses are legally required to provide up-to-date information to the Companies Register and the information that must be provided with the institution refers to all the data initially registered with this body. If the company simply wants to modify its name and not modify it as a consequence of mergers, modifications of the company’s legal entity, trademark protection or other important matters, the company’s representatives will not have to provide an extensive set of documents.
In this case, the updated version of the company’s statutory documents will be sufficient and the modification of the company’s name will be registered with the online platform of the institution. Our team of specialists in company formation in Switzerland can offer in-depth information on the main modifications that can be brought to the articles of association.
What should one know on corporate names in Switzerland?
Corporate names in Switzerland are registered on the Central Business Name Index (Zefix). As a general rule, all Swiss cantons have a register where businesses can register various corporate data. In order to have access to the information provided by a company, any entity can request an excerpt from the register, which can be obtained after the payment of a fee. Swiss businesses are characterized by the following:
- • at the level of 2007, there were a total of 811,630 companies registered in Switzerland;
- • in 2016, the country registered 24,135 newly formed businesses;
- • Switzerland had a business density of 4.31 (which is calculated based on the new business registrations per 1,000 persons);
- • the number of procedures for company formation in Switzerland is of 6;
- • it takes approximately 10 days to register a Swiss legal entity.
Businessmen are invited to contact our team of Swiss company formation experts for more details concerning other procedures that are related to the modification of the corporate name of a local business structure. Our team of specialists can also assist with legal advice and legal representation on any other types of changes that can be brought to a Swiss company.
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Call us now at +41 41 266 0070 to set up an appointment with our experts in Zug, Switzerland. As a Sig Fiduciaire client, you will beneficiate from the expertise of our local consultants for opening a company in Switzerland.
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Being a member of BridgeWest legal network, I had the pleasure to work with colleagues at CompanyFormationSwitzerland.com. They handled successfully numerous company formation cases for my clients interested in starting businesses in Switzerland.
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